Abbott's Office Offers Reward For San Antonio Cop Killer
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SAN ANTONIO (CBSDFW.COM/AP) - A police officer shot and killed in San Antonio on Sunday morning is the latest in a series of targeted attacks on law enforcement. Now, the Governor's office is offering a reward for information that leads to the arrest of the officer's killer.
The detective was writing a traffic ticket when he was shot to death inside of his squad car late Sunday morning outside of the police headquarters, officials said. The attack came less than five months after a gunman killed five officers during a protest in Dallas -- the deadliest day for American law enforcement since 9/11.
Chief William McManus with the San Antonio Police Department identified the officer as 50-year-old Benjamin Marconi. He had been with the force for 20 years. McManus said that he does not believe that the killer has any relationship to the motorist who Marconi had pulled over, and that Marconi was targeted because of his uniform.
"The uniform was the target," McManus said.
The search for the male suspect was still underway Monday morning. No arrests have been made. However, surveillance video shows the man whom police believe to be Marconi's killer. He was at the San Antonio Police Department's headquarters about four hours before the shooting.
Gov. Greg Abbott called Marconi's slaying a "horrific act of violence." In a written statement, Abbott said that "attacks against law enforcement officers will not be tolerated in Texas and must be met with swift justice."
A news release on Monday morning then stated that the Office of the Governor was offering a $15,000 reward for information that leads to the identification and arrest of the person responsible for Marconi's murder. When added to the $10,000 already being offered by San Antonio Crime Stoppers, the total cash reward comes to a hefty $25,000.
Tips can be submitted anonymously by calling either San Antonio Crime Stoppers (210-224-STOP) or Texas Crime Stoppers (1-800-252-TIPS). Tips are also accepted online or by texting 'DPS,' followed by the tip, to 'CRIMES.'
Meanwhile, another police officer in St. Louis was hospitalized on Sunday night after he was shot twice while sitting in traffic in his marked squad car. He was hit in the face, but is expected to survive. The 46-year-old man's name has not been released by authorities. He, too, had been with the force for about 20 years. The suspect was killed in a shootout with police.
At least two other police officers were also shot in other cities Sunday night -- one near Kansas City and another along coastal Florida. But it was not clear whether or not those incidents were targeted attacks.
This past summer, Micah Johnson shot and killed five law enforcement officers who had been working to keep the peace at an anti-police protest in downtown Dallas. Marchers were speaking out against the fatal shootings of black men in Louisiana and Minnesota. Since then, there have been attacks on police officers in cities like Baton Rouge and Des Moines.
"It's always difficult, especially in this this day and age, where police are being targeted across the country," McManus said.
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